Another common pattern in abstract reasoning comes in the form of position.

While we can think of direction as being a compass, we can differentiate that from position by thinking of position as being a location on a map . Here's a pattern that could exist. Name all the towns directly north-west of Sydney. How many are there?

Why is this important?

Parts of images are situated in space and they may form patterns of position that aren’t necessarily directional.

Such possible position patterns are:

• Next to or adjacent to another image.
• Being position on a side or a corner and then to an opposing side or corner.
• A position next to another object that remains constant if the other object moves.
• A position that is relative to a change in another object location.
• Comparison position – is it positioned next to something that is a contrasting colour or size?

Therefore, questions you need to ask yourself when dealing with abstract reasoning questions where a position pattern may exist are:

• Where is it located? Note corners, polar ends, middle sections, sides, other parts of images.

Let’s apply this area now as a pattern detection method to the following question/s.

Example Question/s

Watch video for explanation of the following question/s:

Key Rules to remember

• Positioning involves the placement of an item/image in space. It is where a certain shape or image is in the large space of things. Things to consider are:
• Where is it located? Near the corner, near the end?
• Position often involves comparison, so is it positioned next to something that is contrasting?

Practice time!

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